Abby Chan, MS, RDN, RYT, PT
Abby Chan, MS, RDN, RYT, PT (she/her/hers) is an Arizona-based anti-diet, weight-inclusive Registered Dietitian. She earned her Master’s degree in nutrition and dietetics from Arizona State University. In her early career, she worked as a clinical dietitian in an intensive care unit.
In 2017, Abby co-founded EVOLVE Flagstaff, an integrative practice that offers weight-inclusive services including physical therapy, injury prevention, nutrition counseling, training, and meal preparation. Her nutrition practice mainly focuses on working with athletes and individuals with eating disorders. She helps her clients to re-establish their relationship with food and movement and unlearn behaviors that negatively impact their relationship with their bodies and food.
Apart from her work with clients, Abby is an aerialist and dancer, and director of a non-profit performing arts company, Dark Sky Aerial. She enjoys cooking, coaching strength and conditioning, and teaching yoga. Depending on the season you will find her outdoors biking, skiing, or reading in the sun with her dogs.
Read some of Cara’s Blogs…
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An excerpt from Cara’s writing…
In today’s fast-paced world, stopping and listening to our bodies can be challenging. The constant demands of work, social life, and technology can distract us from tuning into our physical, mental, and emotional signals.
However, listening to our bodies can be a powerful tool for learning how to eat intuitively, aligning our eating and movement with what our body needs, as well as with our true self and the values we have, while helping lift our emotional health, mental well-being, and giving us better physical health.
Physical Body Signals
Our bodies have a language through which they communicate with us. Paying attention to these signals can help us better understand our physical needs and make choices that promote our well-being. Here are some common physical body signals to look out for:
Hunger and Thirst:
One of the most fundamental signals our body sends us is hunger and thirst. It’s important to pay attention to how your body feels when you’re hungry or thirsty. Early signs of hunger may include stomach growling, lightheadedness, or irritability. When you’re thirsty, your mouth may feel dry, and you may experience headaches or fatigue.
Energy Feedback Loop After Eating:
When you’re done eating, from the minutes sitting at the table right after you’re done to the hours later when you’re back at work, just hanging with the family or friends, or the next day when you wake up, ask yourself, “do I have more energy or less?” Is the energy you feel high quality and helping you find more mental clarity and enjoying yourself, or does it lead to more fogginess or even anxiety? Can you subtly shift the exact foods you eat to identify and be more precise with what causes you to feel the feelings and emotions you do?